Powerball

Powerball is one of the hugely popular multi-state lotteries held in the US, along with the Mega Millions.Originally known as Lotto America, Powerball has seen many more changes than just its name since its first draw back in 1988 with several changes to the format and the moving of the Powerball draw from West Des Moines, Iowa to Tallahassee, Florida. The number of states and territories included in the draw has continued to grow and currently stands at 47.

Powerball was responsible for generating the biggest jackpot in the world to date, which totalled US$1.58 billion and was split between three ticket holders on 13th January, 2016. John and Lisa Robinson from Munford, Tennessee, Maureen Smith and David Kaltschmidt from Melbourne Beach, Florida, and Marvin and Mae Acosta from Chino Hills, California came forward to claim the money.

Playing Powerball

Powerball uses two drums to select two different sets of numbers. Players must select five numbers between 1 and 69 plus a red Powerball number between 1 and 26. Prizes are won by matching from just the Powerball, but to win the jackpot players must match all five numbers plus the Powerball. Unlike many other national lotteries across the world, Powerball jackpot winners can choose to receive their winnings in one lump sum or they can opt to receive annuity payments over 30 years which have a higher cash value. The overall odds of winning a prize when playing Powerball are 1 in 24.87.

Winning Powerball

The prizes available and odds of winning on the Powerball are as follows:

Match

Odds of Winning

Estimated Prize Fund

Match 5 plus Powerball

1 in 292,201,338

Jackpot

Match 5

1 in 11,688,053.52

$1 million

Match 4 plus Powerball

1 in 913,129.18

$50,000

Match 4

1 in 36,525.16

$100

Match 3 plus Powerball

1 in 14,494.11

$100

Match 3

1 in 579.76

$7

Match 2 plus Powerball

1 in 701.32

$7

Match 1 plus Powerball

1 in 91.97

$4

Only Powerball

1 in 38.32

$4

The fairness and security of the Powerball draws is handled with military precision under the watchful eyes of multi-state lottery draw officials, an independent auditor and a security official. All of the Powerball draw equipment including the sets of balls is stored in a locked vault which can only be opened in the presence of independent auditors. The vault itself employs the highest levels of security and all events are both audio and video recorded when the vault door is opened. All Powerball draws take place in front of a public audience further proving absolute fairness.

Remember, here at Online Lotto we will keep you updated on all the Powerball draw results, winners, news and changes. You can buy tickets to play Powerball by clicking the Powerball banner above.